Etmopterus is a genus of lantern sharks in the squaliform family Etmopteridae. They are found in deep sea ecosystems of the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans.[2]

Quick Facts Scientific classification, Type species ...
Etmopterus
Temporal range: 48–0 Ma[1] Middle Eocene to Present
Thumb
Velvet belly lanternshark (Etmopterus spinax)
Thumb
Green lanternshark (Etmopterus virens)
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Chondrichthyes
Subclass: Elasmobranchii
Subdivision: Selachimorpha
Order: Squaliformes
Family: Etmopteridae
Genus: Etmopterus
Rafinesque, 1810
Type species
Etmopterus aculeatus
Rafinesque, 1810
Close

Ecology

A number of species in this genus function as host to the specialized parasitic barnacle Anelasma squalicola, which embeds itself into the skin of the shark and extracts nutrients from its bloodstream.[3]

Species

Thumb
E. bigelowi
Thumb
E. bullisi
Thumb
E. carteri
Thumb
E. gracilispinis
Thumb
E. granulosus
Thumb
E. hillianus
Thumb
E. lucifer
Thumb
E. perryi
Thumb
E. polli
Thumb
E. princeps
Thumb
E. pusillus
Thumb
E. robinsi

There are currently 45 recognized species in this genus:

Extinct species

There are at least two extinct species found in Etmopterus.[17]

  • Etmopterus acutidens Casier 1966
  • Etmopterus cahuzaci Adnet 2006

See also

References

Wikiwand in your browser!

Seamless Wikipedia browsing. On steroids.

Every time you click a link to Wikipedia, Wiktionary or Wikiquote in your browser's search results, it will show the modern Wikiwand interface.

Wikiwand extension is a five stars, simple, with minimum permission required to keep your browsing private, safe and transparent.